Since President Biden’s poor performance in the first presidential debate, major Democratic donors have been busy with activity. Rich people on vacation have become deeply involved in political strategies. They are contacting every important politician they know, urging them to call for Biden’s removal. They are offering money to supportive members of Congress and withholding funds from those who aren’t. Even usually private donors are talking to reporters about the chaos within the party.
These are chaotic times. There are so many ideas circulating among the donor class that some members are struggling to keep track of all the plots. Some of the richest people in the world are constantly debating how much influence they truly have to change Biden’s mind.
They are considering various strategies: Should they funnel money to a super PAC supporting Democratic members of Congress who are calling for Biden’s removal, which has raised $2 million so far? Or should they raise funds for Vice President Kamala Harris as a sign of support? Another option is setting aside money in an escrow account for a Democratic presidential campaign led by someone other than Biden.
Tom Strickler, a founder of the Hollywood talent agency WME, shared that he recently met with Senator Martin Heinrich, Democrat of New Mexico, in Los Angeles. He told Heinrich’s team that if they didn’t publicly call for Biden to step aside, they wouldn’t receive any donations from him. Strickler also planned to donate the maximum legal amount to seven vulnerable Democratic Senate candidates, but now he won’t support them because they haven’t broken with Biden. He’s encouraging his friends to send the same message: support Biden and lose our backing.
However, there’s a chance that donors might have no leverage at all. The Supreme Court’s 2010 Citizens United decision allowed for massive amounts of money to flow into American politics, raising concerns about excessive influence from a small group of wealthy individuals. However, major Republican donors learned their limits when they couldn’t dislodge Donald Trump from the party’s nomination in 2016 or eight years later.
Now, Democratic megadonors are experiencing similar frustrations, especially since Biden has shown he can raise significant funds from small-dollar donors. Despite their wealth and ambitions, many Democratic contributors and their advisers feel their influence is limited and are trying to be realistic. There’s a pervasive sense of powerlessness.
Ultimately, Biden’s decisions are influenced primarily by his family, including First Lady Jill Biden, and long-time aides. Major donors have debated who in Biden’s inner circle could be reached and which donors have the best access. However, few Democratic donors are optimistic about their influence, especially given Biden’s increasingly anti-elite rhetoric.
